Three Ducatis on the first two rows
The V4R is also starting to go strong in the hands of other drivers. Michael Rinaldi, 22, from Team Barni, is fifth and ahead of Eugene Laverty (GoEleven). However, the gap to the magician Bautista is quite substantial, six tenths. The new name of this qualification is Sandro Cortese, a former world champion who is beating the stages: for the German, of Italian origin through his father, this is only the third race with a 1000 cc motorcycle! Very good also for the BMW which, with Tom Sykes, is very good in the mixed part of the track, except losing six tenths (you read correctly: six!) on Bautista in T3, the sector which includes the straight and the last curve. The Germans will bring the “real” engine to Imola, while for the moment Tom is content with a four-cylinder engine that is barely more efficient than the stock one.
The only Ducati rider not yet in the mix is Chaz Davies, forced to start on the third row on this track. In 2017, he took pole in 1'49"421: with the same V4R that powers Bautista, the Briton stopped at 1'49"970. It was also difficult for Marco Melandri, penalized by a fall at turn 2, although without any physical problems. In 2018, Rea started eleven times from the third row, and never on the fourth: he starts well, is an expert in returns, but against a Bautista who will have a clear track, it is a much more affair complicated.
Red missile
Regarding top speeds, Bautista stands out with 319,5 km/h, followed by the other Ducatis of Davies and Rinaldi. Rea's Kawasaki stopped at 310,3 km/h, the best Yamaha (van der Mark) is fifth in the list with 314,9 km/h. Tom Sykes' BMW reaches 305,9 km/h.
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Picture Diego De Col
